ISLAMABAD: Close on the heels of the massacres in Jammu and Kashmir, India on Tuesday told Pakistan that more needed to be done to curb cross-border terrorism.

Addressing the Supreme Court Bar Association in Lahore on "India-Pakistan friendly relations," Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan Shivshankar Menon said, "Despite some variations in infiltration patterns, terrorist training, communications and support continue, waxing and waning with the seasons and the political climate."

Ostensibly influenced by Sunday night's incident, this is the most direct public message by Mr. Menon in recent months. on terrorism.

The Pakistan Foreign Office chose to describe the killings as "unfortunate acts of terrorism." Foreign Office spokesperson Tasneem Aslam declined to answer questions on whether Pakistan-based terror outfits were involved.

`Just lines on map'

In his address, Mr. Menon said borders between India and Pakistan cannot be redrawn but the two sides could work towards making them irrelevant, "towards making them just lines on a map" so that people on both sides should be able to move more freely and trade with one another.

"Naturally, this assumes that firm control is kept over terrorism, as has been agreed between President Musharraf and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Terrorism is an enemy of civilised societies everywhere, and this is increasingly recognised in both our societies," Mr. Menon said.

Mr. Menon said the involvement of terrorist organisations in relief work after the October 2005 Kashmir earthquake had resulted in their public rehabilitation.

Mr. Menon said Pakistan's view that the resolution of the Kashmir issue was essential for any other peace measures to have any meaning was an extreme and partial view.

"It wrongly assumes that Pakistan has no interest in a broader relationship with India and pays no cost for hostility to India, and ignores how confidence building measures can reinforce the effort to resolve issues," he said.

Mr. Menon presented a positive prospect for improvement of relations between the two countries. He said there was widely recognised in India and Pakistan that the destiny of the two peoples is interlinked and the goodwill generated by the peace process provided an opportunity to redefine the nature of the relationship, moving away from the zero-sum calculations of the past.

`Ground realities'

On Sir Creek and Siachen, Mr. Menon was confident that "meaningful agreements" could be reached. He said both sides could move forward if they accepted "ground realities" and took a long view of history.

India demonstrated its willingness to find "pragmatic, practical solutions" to the Kashmir issue, as exemplified by the recent suggestion of the Prime Minister in Amritsar for a "step by step approach."

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